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Miami Herald
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Florida spends $4 million on new ‘ideology-free' college accreditor
Florida's higher education leaders are fast-tracking an ambitious, multi-state plan to form a new college accreditor — an effort which Gov. Ron DeSantis is touting as a way to subvert the grip of 'woke accreditation cartels' on academia. The State University System's Board of Governors on Friday approved a roadmap for establishing the Commission for Public Higher Education, a new accrediting agency backed by university systems from five neighboring red states: North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina and Texas. Florida plans on launching a six-month test run of the new accreditation process with six universities this December, according to the agency's business plan approved unanimously by the Board of Governors in the Friday meeting. The organization aims to secure the U.S. Department of Education's stamp of approval for the accreditation by June 2028. The agency must have at least two years of experience operating as an accreditor before it can seek recognition from the U.S. Department of Education. Florida's GOP-dominated Legislature is backing the venture with a $4 million start-up injection. The agency is anticipating that participating university systems will dedicate similar contributions, per the business plan. Accreditation, which colleges must obtain in order to receive federal student financial aid funding, is meant to act as a quality-control measure for institutions. But critics of the current system say the process is cumbersome and lacks mechanisms for universities to provide input on evaluation criteria. Once a niche subject rarely discussed outside of academic policy wonk circles, accreditation is an increasingly hot topic among conservatives. Some Republicans say accreditors stifle innovation and force left-wing ideology upon institutions. A 'secret weapon' Prominent GOP officials seeking to shake up accreditation are deploying wartime rhetoric. President Donald Trump has threatened to wield the accreditation system as a 'secret weapon' to force schools to adopt policies favored by conservatives. When DeSantis announced Florida's new accrediting agency last month, he said the accreditation establishment had colluded to form 'juntas.' For the governor, seizing control of accreditation is one of the final frontiers in his quest to reshape Florida's higher education landscape, aiming to root out what he sees as rampant left-wing orthodoxy on college campuses. Republican state lawmakers under DeSantis have pushed for laws banning diversity, equity and inclusion spending at state universities and scrubbing 'identity politics' from general education courses. DeSantis' has said one of his biggest gripes with accreditors is that they threaten to yank accreditation from schools without DEI initiatives. But the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges — the longtime accreditor of Florida's 40 public universities and colleges — is the only one of the seven southern accreditation agencies that mandate DEI criteria. Discussions between Florida and the University of North Carolina system began last year, Florida university system chancellor Ray Rodrigues told the Miami Herald in an interview, because of shared concerns over SACSCOC's supposed political overreach. In 2023, the accreditor began investigating UNC-Chapel Hill to determine whether it violated accreditation criteria when it established the School of Civic Life and Leadership — an academic unit meant to promote civil discourse — without faculty input. Florida's beef with SACSCOC goes back farther. In 2021, the agency raised concerns after the University of Florida initially barred professors from offering expert testimony in a voting rights lawsuit against the state. (The university later reversed course.) That same year, SACSCOC dinged the Board of Governors for considering then-Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran — a sitting board member at the time — for the Florida State University presidency. (Corcoran has served as president of New College of Florida since 2023.) For administrators, the accreditation process can be cumbersome. It involves hosting campus visits and filling out lengthy spreadsheets. Robert Shireman, a former Obama-era Education Department official, described the process as the higher-ed equivalent of filing taxes. 'If you feel like you're a good college, it can be annoying,' said Shireman, who currently serves on the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, which advises the U.S. Secretary of Education on accreditation. According to Shireman, accreditation critics across the political spectrum have raised concerns that accrediting agencies are sluggish and lack mechanisms for universities and colleges to have a say in how they are evaluated. SACSCOC, for instance, is overseen by a 77-member board that meets twice a year. The CPHE's board is far leaner, initially consisting of six members selected directly by participating university systems, according to the agency's business plan — a composition that Shireman said may allow the agency to more nimbly make decisions. Unusual structure In terms of organizational structure, the agency will operate as a nonprofit with the Florida Board of Governors acting as its sole member. That's unusual for an accrediting agency, Shireman said. Accreditors typically operate as nonprofits, but are rarely managed by state agencies and act independent of the institutions it holds accountable. Whether or not the agency could maintain the independence necessary to be seen as legitimate emerged as a key concern during Friday's board meeting. Kimberly Dunn, the board's faculty representative, suggested barring the agency from accrediting Florida's public universities until it had established independence. Not everybody is on board with the accreditation overhaul. Robin Goodman, an English professor at Florida State University, told state board members on Friday they were pushing for 'a solution in search of a problem.' Florida's current accreditation setup, Goodman said, was working perfectly fine and was helping universities climb national rankings. She called the DeSantis' DEI concerns a 'non-evidence based claim' and raised concerns about whether the governor would use CPHE as a Trojan Horse for injecting conservative ideas into curricula. 'That just seems like a bad decision and will make our universities not as great as they are now,' Goodman told board members. Dunn, the faculty representative, said it was important to ensure the agency's accreditation criteria didn't impose or restrict certain content in curriculum. Rodrigues, the university system chancellor, responded that Florida can't establish an accreditor that 'removes left wing ideology and replaces it with right wing ideology.' 'The point of this is to have an accreditor that's not involved in ideology at all,' Rodrigues said. 'It's completely focused on academic excellence [and] quality education.'
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Diaz, Nuñez, Johnson: How many DeSantis allies lead Florida universities and colleges?
Of all the changes Ron DeSantis has made during his time as governor of Florida, one of the most lasting may be his mark on education. For years, DeSantis has waged war on what he called false ideological practices, wokeness and DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) practices in an effort to overhaul the state's school system to align with his priorities. Florida lawmakers, under his recommendations and in the name of protecting parents' rights, have passed multiple bills restricting gender identity and discussion of sexual orientation, banning LGBTQ+ and inclusion displays, banning transgender athletes from competing on women's public school teams, streamlining the process of challenging books in school libraries and classrooms, adding tough new requirements on teacher unions, weakening tenure protections, and excising DEI and "critical race theory" elements from curriculums. And one by one, positions in Florida's State University System (SUS) that in years past would be staffed by academics, researchers, or possibly business leaders with strong fundraising skills have been filled with Republican politicians, political allies and staff members from DeSantis' cabinet. On June 2, Jeanette Nuñez, formerly DeSantis' lieutenant governor, was named president of Florida International University. The week before, former state education commissioner Manny Diaz was elected interim president of University of West Florida. DeSantis recommended his deputy chief of staff Anastasios Kamoutsas to replace him. In cases where a direct DeSantis connection isn't involved, the governor's influence is still felt. Santa Ono was on track to become the next president of the University of Florida and had been approved by UF's Board of Trustees but was shot down by the Board of Governors, a 17-member board that oversees the public university system, over his handling of pro-Palestine encampments in Michigan in 2024 and his past support of DEI initiatives, which he has since walked back. Most of the 17 members were appointed during DeSantis' term. DeSantis and education: Florida governor Ron DeSantis is overhauling education policy in Florida On June 2, Jeanette Nuñez, formerly DeSantis' lieutenant governor and a state representative, was named president of Florida International University. Nuñez was one of three finalists for the position, but the other two said they would only continue to a public phase of the process if they were chosen as the lone candidate according to FIU Carlos Duart, who led the school's search committee. Critics said that DeSantis helped get her the job, something one of the trustees appeared to admit when he supported her. 'I believe she will be a very successful president, and to be honest, if we don't pick her as our president, I suspect that tomorrow we are going to find out who the governor's office's second pick is,' Dean Colson said. 'I really like our first pick, so why would I take that chance?' The appointment remains subject to approval by the SUS Board of Governors. Nuñez, an FIU grad who has served as interim president since February. is set to receive a five-year contract with a base salary of $925,000 and annual performance bonuses of up to $400,000. Manny Diaz, the former commissioner of the Florida Department of Education, was selected on May 27 to be the interim president for the University of West Florida in Pensacola. Diaz served in the House from 2012 to 2018 and in the Senate from 2018 until 2022 when DeSantis recommended him as education commissioner. Before entering politics, Diaz was a social studies teacher and baseball coach in Miami-Dade County Public Schools. He became an assistant principal and later chief operating officer at Doral College. Diaz replaces UWF president Martha Saunders, who chose to step down after months of a contentious board of trustees meeting where newly appointed member Zach Smith grilled her about "diversity, equity and inclusion" issues he had identified when combing through UWF's social media. Smith had been appointed by DeSantis days earlier, one of several controversial DeSantis appointees to the board over the last few months. Diaz will become interim president July 14 and is expected to eventually become the official president. Over spirited objections and protests from the FAMU community of students, teachers and alumni, Marva Johnson was picked on May 16 to be president of Florida A&M University. Johnson is not a politician but has been heavily involved in Republican politics, even as key organizer for Florida's COVID-scuttled plans to host the Republican National Convention in 2020. She previously served as a political appointee in the administrations of Governors Rick Scott and DeSantis and was chair of the Florida State Board of Education for four years. She also served on DeSantis' transition team in 2018. Critics said she had no actual academic experience and feared she was put in place at the HBCU by DeSantis. There was widespread speculation that FAMU board Vice Chair Deveron Gibbons insisted on adding Johnson to what was initially a list of three final candidates committee members interviewed and voted on during closed sessions. Gibbons has denied this. 'I was not sent here to dismantle FAMU," Johnson said in a May 14 public forum. "I would love the opportunity to work with you and to grow FAMU.' James Uthmeier, DeSantis' former chief of staff who was tapped to become the state's attorney general, seemed to acknowledge the governor's role in her appointment. "Congratulations to Marva and @FAMU_1887 — what a terrific selection for the university community!" Uthmeier wrote on X. "And well done by team DeSantis and the SUS for driving this home! Great result for Florida's higher ed and next generation of leaders." Johnson's hiring must be approved by the SUS Board of Governors. FAMU's Board of Trustees are currently negotiating the $750,000 base salary she requested but are pushing a $650,000 base salary with a possible $86,000 bonus. On Feb. 10, Florida Atlantic University selected former House representative and Republican majority leader Adam Hasner over two finalists with academic administration backgrounds: FSU's College of Business Dean Michael Hartline and the University of Maine's Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs John Volin. His lack of experience in higher education was criticized by some students and faculty members, and there were protests concerning his time working for The Geo Group, a company that operates private prisons. 'I believe I have the right skills and the right experience to lead this university at this pivotal time in its history,' he told the trustees, who voted unanimously in his favor. DeSantis initially supported then-state representative and conservative firebrand Randy Fine for the job, but he was not included in the list of finalists. Two days after the list was released, the SUS chancellor halted the search over concerns about whether the search committee had broken government-transparency rules and the Board of Governors ultimately ordered the search to be done again. Fine pulls DeSantis endorsement: Ron DeSantis says FAU job played role in Randy Fine's defection to Donald Trump Mel Ponder was unanimously selected to be president of Northwest Florida State College in Niceville in November 2024. Previously he had been an Okaloosa County commissioner, mayor of Destin, a Destin City Council member and a representative in the Florida House. Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Ponder to the CareerSource Florida board of directors in 2022 and reappointed him in 2023. In April 2024, the State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota picked Tommy Gregory, a lawyer and Air Force veteran who chaired the state House Judiciary Committee, as its new president. Gregory was a Republican representative from Lakewood Ranch elected to the House in 2018 who said he served as an instructor and course director during this two decades in the Air Force. In January 2023, DeSantis appointed six new board of trustees at New College of Florida in Sarasota, which had a national reputation as a top public liberal arts college. The new board quickly fired sitting president Patricia Okker over her DEI policies and installed then-state commissioner of education and former Republican House representative and Florida Speaker of the House Richard Corcoran at an annual salary twice that of the former president. DeSantis frequently said he wanted New College to be more like a conservative, classical liberal arts college such as the Christian Hillsdale College in Michigan, and Cocoran and the board have worked toward that goal. Since taking power, they have abolished the school's DEI office, fired the school's dean for DEI initiatives and hired a former Republican Party operative to be admissions officer with a direction to actively try to recruit more student-athletes. In April 2024, the board approved a $200,000 bonus for Corcoran, which along with his salary and other benefits put him among the highest-paid presidents in the state university system. New College of Florida is the smallest Florida public university. New College book dump: This Florida college is trashing LGBTQ+, gender and diversity books. What we know In October 2022, Ben Sasse, the Republican U.S. senator from Nebraska, was selected as the sole finalist to become president of the University of Florida, despite objections from students and the community. This was the first major university president selection since a new Florida law, SB 520, allowed universities to keep candidate searches secret and outside of the requirements of Florida's open meetings and public records laws. It also came after more than a year of back and forth between the DeSantis administration and UF, including university leaders possibly being pressured into fast-tracking the hiring of Joseph Ladapo, the governor's pick for surgeon general, and a lawsuit over the university's decision to prevent UF political science professors from giving expert testimony against the state's new elections law because it would go against the governor. Sasse was previously president of Midland University, a small, private Lutheran school in Fremont, Nebraska, for five years before being elected to the Senate and had been a faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin. During his tenure he eliminated DEI employee positions at UF and announced the university would fund 19 new projects related to research, technology, AI and student life. UF received $130 million in new funding from the state. Sasse unexpectedly resigned in July 2024, saying he had been diagnosed with epilepsy and wanted to spend more time with his wife Melissa, who suffered an aneurysm and series of strokes in 2007, and his children. After he left office, stories emerged about his lavish spending on catering, staff and consulting contracts. The Independent Florida Alligator reported that he "more than tripled his office's spending, directing millions in university funds into secretive consulting contracts and high-paying positions for his GOP allies." He also hired multiple staffers he knew from his time as a senator, only one of which lived in Florida, which cost the university $633,000, 20 times the previous president's annual average of $28,000, the Alligator said. Sasse denied any inappropriate spending. These are hardly the first politicians to head universities and colleges, of course. Florida State University, for example, has had several politicians in charge, including the recently passed John Thrasher (Republican former senator and House speaker), the late T.K. Wetherell (Democrat representative and speaker) and the late Sandy D'Alemberte (Florida representative). University trustees say they need presidents who can raise funds, negotiate with state leaders, and deal with poltiical landmines. But the recent moves come as DeSantis has been intentionally trying to steer the ship of Florida education in a conservative direction. 'The majority of the politically driven appointments are linked to the far right," said Marybeth Gasman, a professor and associate dean for Research at Rutgers University's Graduate School of Education. "These shifts have led to the rise of presidents who are also seen as aligned with specific political agendas, and this can impact everything from academic freedom to campus culture.' Mary Lett, Pensacola News Journal; Alan Festo, Gainesville Sun; and Tarah Jean, Tallahassee Democrat; contributed to this story. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: DeSantis allies and staff fill top spots in Florida higher education
The Independent
04-06-2025
- Business
- The Independent
University of Florida board rejects hiring Michigan's president after he changed DEI policy to appease Trump
The board that oversees Florida's state university system voted against hiring Dr. Santa Ono, the former president of the University of Michigan, after he seemingly switched his stance on diversity, equity, and inclusion to appease President Donald Trump. The State University System Board of Governors' 6-10 vote against Ono came after hours of contentious debate and grilling of the academic over his previous position on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Ono, who received unanimous approval from the University of Florida Board of Trustees, was mainly questioned Tuesday about his recently changed stance on DEI, and how he would uphold Florida's agenda against DEI. The longtime academic's proposed contract included ideological requirements. In the role, he would be forced to cooperate with Gov. Ron DeSantis' Office of Government Efficiency and appoint other university officials who are 'firmly aligned' with Florida's approach. Ono was the sole finalist for the job, which would have paid him a $3 million annual package that included a $1.5 million base salary, the Florida Phoenix reported. However, on Tuesday, members of the board of governors were fixated on Ono's suddenly different stance on DEI, with some calling into question whether he switched sides to appease Trump or simply to get the gig. 'It's insidious that it feels like pushing a rope uphill when we establish these policies, if a president doesn't really believe in those policies,' Board of Governors Vice Chair Alan Levine said during the meeting in Orlando. 'And it's a powerful position — you can be an inhibitor, or you can help advance. And so I guess so much of your record reflects your deeply held beliefs, that you have been an advocate of DEI up until recently.' Ono had supported DEI initiatives at the University of Michigan until shuttering some of its programs earlier this year — a move some thought had to do with Trump's stripping of federal funding from universities. 'It looks to me like you got rid of the program because you needed to do what you had to do with the president's orders and the funding issues. But you didn't really push to get rid of DEI,' Levine said. Ono repeatedly told the board that he began looking at DEI when he took office at Michigan, instead of after Trump's executive order against it. He claimed he developed a new stance in the last year and a half after talking with students, and said that before, he was not an expert on the subject. Even still, his record left many conservative politicians unimpressed, including Republican U.S. Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, who wrote on X that it seemed Ono 'is willing to appease and prioritize far-left activists over ensuring students are protected and receive a quality education.' Other members of the GOP raising objections to Ono's hiring included Donald Trump Jr., Florida Republican U.S. Reps. Byron Donalds, Greg Steube and Jimmy Patronis. Ono was also questioned Tuesday by former Republican state House speakers Paul Renner and Jose Oliva, who wondered whether Ono changed his stance just to secure the Florida job. 'Now we are told to believe you are now abandoning an entire ideological architecture,' Oliva said. 'We are asking someone to lead our flagship university. I don't understand how it becomes unfair.' The intense degree of questioning from governors was not standard procedure, and it was the first time they had rejected a president, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Ono previously defended his change of heart in Inside Higher Ed, writing that he supported DEI at first because he thought the aim was 'equal opportunity and fairness for every student.' 'But over time, I saw how DEI became something else – more about ideology, division and bureaucracy, not student success,' Ono wrote. 'I believe in Florida's vision for higher education.' Now, the months-long search will have to restart. The University of Florida remains without a permanent president, with former UF President Kent Fuchs holding the role in the interim.
Yahoo
01-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Don't let politics rule UF president decision. Just look at New College.
The Florida Board of Governors, which oversees the State University System under a constitutional amendment passed in 2002, faces an unprecedented situation as it makes a decision on whether to ratify the University of Florida's choice of Santa Ono as the school's new president. While the UF board was unanimous in supporting Ono, vocal opposition to his candidacy has come from a trustee of another institution overseen by the State University System – New College of Florida. And that New College trustee is Christopher Rufo, the provocative commentator best known for his social media and blog posts. The Board of Governors should take this opportunity to look past the headlines and benchmark how New College has actually fared under the watch of leaders like Rufo. It should do so by using standard state metrics over the past two-plus years – because these metrics show New College has been a debacle under Richard Corcoran, the president Rufo helped to install at the school's leader. It's a warning for the Board of Governors as it decides the fate of UF. Every June, all Florida state universities send their annual statistics – known as "the metrics" – to the Board of Governors in a standardized format as part of their annual planning. The latest annual release of metrics for New College is grim, and particularly so when it comes to incoming first-year students who enter the college directly from high school. For example, from fall 2022 to fall 2024, there has been: A decrease in the percentage of incoming students with a 4.0 grade point average (from 55% to 42%). A decrease in the percentage of incoming students who finished in the top 10% of their high school graduating classes (from 29% to 14%). A decrease in the average SAT score of incoming first-year New College students (from 1233 to 1153). And while New College continues to tout increased total enrollment, from fall 2022 to fall 2024 the number of freshmen – those going directly from high school to New College – only increased by 28. The other 150 new students were transfer students Indeed, the number of "first time in college" students at New College actually declined from fall 2023 to 2024. Many of these transfer students aren't from Florida, and many aren't even coming to New College from the United States. Just look at the lengthy roster of New College's 2024-25 men's soccer team: Based on their "home country" listings, the overwhelming majority of team members are from countries outside the United States – and some have come from distant nations like France, Ghana, Brazil and Australia. All of this is taking place at an incredible cost – literally. According to annual Florida CFO Reports on Component Units, expenses at New College have exploded. During the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022, New College's expenses were $60 million; they were $94 million during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024. But after spending all of these additional millions, New College has only added around 180 students. The New College debacle isn't a result of a change in policy. For example. the school's elimination of its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion office was largely a non-issue: In February 2023 I personally spoke in favor of eliminating the DEI office at New College, both because of my own negative experiences with it and to make the point that it wasn't actually important to the school. More: New College of Florida 2025 graduation marks achievement and endurance However, the New College debacle is a result of a change in management: Corcoran had no background as a higher education leader when he was hired by Rufo and other trustees, and his lack of experience continues to negatively impact the school. For example, the New College board didn't tell Corcoran to boost enrollment through a shambolic athletics program. Corcoran did that on his own initiative, and even recruiting large numbers of student-athletes hasn't worked out the way he'd hoped. That's because student-athletes don't simply want spots on team rosters; they want actual playing time, and that's much more difficult to attain when so many other athletes have been recruited to those teams. It's the kind of thing someone with higher educational experience might have known. Mistakes like these could be seen as growing pains for the "new" New College; indeed, during a 2023 interview, Rufo compared the approach at New College to remodeling a kitchen. 'You do the demo," Rufo said, "then you do the build." More: New College picked wrong guy for commencement speaker. Here are 5 better options. | Opinion But it was an astonishing analogy, and it displayed Rufo's lack of understanding that for generations New College students – most of them from Florida – had been attracted to the school precisely because of the unique academic system that previously existed. And in terms of course offerings, very little has truly changed at New College. The horrible statistics, embarrassments and anecdotes coming from New College should serve as blinking red warning lights for the Board of Governors as it weighs the fate of UF. The first warning: A university needs a university administrator, or it will fall apart. The second warning: It is Florida's families who lose when Florida's public universities are mismanaged because out-of-state trustees are prioritizing scoring points on social media over examining data – and over doing the hard work of accountability and governing. It's not too late to put New College under real leadership or even to fold its unique academic program into another institution. And this is certainly no time to replicate Rufo's destructive failure of oversight at New College at the University of Florida. Mike Sanderson is a New College of Florida alum. He is the former editor of The Catalyst, New College of Florida's student newspaper. This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Don't let UF repeat New College of Florida's bad lessons | Opinion
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
UWF President Martha Saunders 'made the Pensacola community a better place to live'
The principle, 'Leave things better than you found them,' perfectly describes Martha Saunders's tenure as president of the University of West Florida. Saunders, who has been UWF's leader since 2017 and is the longest-serving president in the State University System, announced Monday, she was stepping down from the post. During her time as president, she championed the creation of more than 20 new academic programs, including offerings in cybersecurity, mechanical engineering and an Intelligent Systems and Robotics Ph.D. program in collaboration with the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition. To those who know and work with Saunders, she is so much more. 'Dr. Saunders was an exceptionally fine administrator and equally fine academic. We both studied communication as a vocation, and she was exceptionally fine teacher,' recalled Jerry Maygarden, a former Pensacola mayor, city council member and member of the Florida House of Representatives. 'We team taught a course last term, sharing the teaching load. She paid attention to detail and had a keen interest in the students. She is going to be tremendously missed by faculty, staff and students, I hope she will return to the faculty going forward but that remains to be seen.' University of West Florida: President Martha Saunders resigns Maygarden also noted the university's enrollment growth under Saunders's leadership. Defying national trends, UWF achieved record enrollment every year since 2021 − a 14% increase over the past five years. 'We're nearing 15,000 students, that's larger than the University of Notre Dame in Indiana,' Maygarden said. 'We're in the Panhandle − an area not associated with a large population − surrounded by the state of Alabama and the Gulf of America, and still experienced steady growth with her as the leader.' Alonzie Scott, who serves on the UWF Board of Trustees, said Saunders will likely be remembered as one of the university's best presidents. 'I came on board almost seven years ago, and we've seen enrollment increase every year, not one year, but every year of Dr. Saunders's presidency,' he said, echoing Maygarden. 'We've also launched the engineering program, and our campus housing is in the 90th percentile for student occupancy – nationwide.' Scott also spoke about the growth of the university's intercollegiate athletic programs, which are among the best in Division II. 'She's also hired exceptional faculty and staff members, who are focused on helping students get jobs when they graduate or become entrepreneurs,' Scott said, adding Saunders' replacement will have some big shoes to fill. Some other UWF achievements under Saunders tutelage include: UWF becoming a top-performing public university in the Florida Board of Governors performance-based funding metrics Spearheaded the establishment of UWF's Center for Cybersecurity Oversaw the development of Florida's first bachelor's in cybersecurity degree program designated as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity by the National Security Agency and U.S. Department of Homeland Security The launching of a civil engineering program this fall Construction of the Darrell Gooden Center, the Lab Sciences Annex and the Sandy Sansing Sports Medicine Center Ranking in the top 15 public regional institutions in the South by U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges for five consecutive years Multiple national military-friendly institution designations Grown UWF's investment pool by 50%, providing financial stability and opportunities for future growth Under Saunders's leadership, UWF also has met or exceeded every performance standard set by the state, said Sen. Don Gaetz. 'UWF graduates have the best chance to obtain employment over any other higher education institution in the state. All of that is because of Martha Saunders' commitment and capability. She leaves the University of West Florida in triumph,' Gaetz said. Scott agreed. 'Whoever comes in behind Dr. Saunders, if they are not looking to raise the performance standards we have today or if any of these metrics drop, the community needs to hold them accountable because that person is not doing the job they're supposed to be doing in the position,' said Scott, the first Black senior executive in the 79-year history of the Office of Naval Research. Sandy Sansing, a UWF alum and supporter, said Saunders did a phenomenal job representing and leading UWF. 'From the students, faculty and alumni, everyone I know totally loved and respected her for the job she did. I am so pleased for the wonderful way she improved every metrics that the state mandated and led UWF to the top,' Sansing said. Elizabeth Turner-Ward, a UWF alum and current graduate student, said Saunders fostered a community focused on excellence. 'It's a community where students from all walks of life felt welcomed into. It has been a community that pushed everyone to be their best together,' said Turner-Ward. 'The types of programs Dr. Saunders pushed with high-impact practices and undergraduate research have made a significant impact on students' careers and lives. I am grateful I've gotten to attend the university under her leadership, and I greatly admire her. She will be missed by the student body.' Turner-Ward said Saunders has shown great dignity during recent challenging situations. Saunders' commitment to students' success extended beyond UWF. Pensacola State College President Ed Meadows praised Saunders for assisting with the college's Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Cybersecurity. 'Before Martha become the UWF president, she was the vice president of academic affairs and she helped clear the path for us to receive approval for our bachelor's degree in cybersecurity,' Meadows recalled, adding the two also worked together on several articulation agreements including the PSC2UWF Student Partnership Program. 'I have always enjoyed Martha's humor and wit, particularly in meetings with her and Pensacola Christian College president when we talked about how to be better partners in our community. Those meeting were always held with the goal of providing what is best for students, and I have always appreciated her for that.' Saunders made the Pensacola community a better place to live, Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves said. 'Dr. Saunders didn't just keep momentum at the UWF, she made an aspirational vision – higher performance, bigger enrollment and unprecedented success – a reality,' he said. 'Her legacy will always be defined by success, strength and the fact that she ushered UWF to unprecedented heights.' Suzanne Lewis, a former UWF trustee who serve on the board for 14 years, said Saunders' brought innovative programs to the university such as giving undergraduate students access to research studies and internships. 'Giving students the opportunity to participate in internships in their fields of study improved their chances of being hired after graduation,' said Lewis, who added Saunders' communication skills made her relatable to UWF students, faculty, staff and community members. 'She was always responsive to the community. I think the community, as a whole, will show Martha their gratitude for all the things she has done,' Lewis said. This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: University of West Florida President Martha Saunders resigns
